Mohammed’s Radio

When we attended the play, I hadn’t realized that staged reading meant the actors would not be dressed in costume and they would not really be acting, rather they would be sitting. I thought that this would end up hurting the play and that I wouldn’t really like it, but it did not detract from the play in the least.

The actors were very good in reading their lines and thoroughly portrayed the emotion behind what they were saying. Many of the questions that came up during our class discussion were answered during the play or afterwards by Stephen Garcia, the writer. The actors were very good at becoming the character they were intending to portray even in the case of little Joe, who was supposed to be 8 yrs old but was played by someone much older. I think this was a result of how well they immersed themselves in the role and acted and spoke in a way that hid their true personality.

Not only did they draw the audience into the play, the actors elicited many responses of awes and laughter. In addition, the monologues helped clarify the scene and shed light onto the following scenes. However, I thought the ending was very sad and I had wished it turned out differently.

The play was different than I had expected, but it was a staged reading. I wonder if my feelings toward the play will change when the actors are in their costumes and the play is actually acted out rather than only written.